


Square R4: Read the Fine Print

by dracusfyre



Series: Tony Stark Bingo Challenge [4]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bingo Fill, Gen, M/M, Post-Avengers (2012), Soul Bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-02
Updated: 2018-06-02
Packaged: 2019-05-16 14:34:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14813222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dracusfyre/pseuds/dracusfyre
Summary: Thor convinces Odin to agree to another punishment for Loki after the Attack on New York, and needs Tony's help.





	Square R4: Read the Fine Print

**Author's Note:**

> For Square R4: Forced Soulbond.

“You want me to _what_?” Tony said incredulously.

Thor frowned, looking confused. “I want you to be a guarantor of Loki’s behavior,” he repeated slowly. “What part is confusing you?”

Tony blinked a couple of times as he tried to wrap his mind around Thor’s proposal. His eyes went unbidden over Thor’s shoulder to Loki, who was standing with his arms clasped behind his back, face carefully blank.  _Too_ blank, Tony thought, narrowing his eyes at him.  When Loki saw the look on Tony’s face the corner of his mouth curled just the smallest bit, which made Tony’s scowl deepen.  “Why me?” He asked finally, looking back at Thor.  He knew Loki was behind this somehow, he just needed to figure out how.  And why.

Thor started to answer, but then he glanced over his shoulder at his brother and led Tony some distance away.  “Stark, the only other option that my father will agree to is prison,” he said quietly.  “Before my mother and I intervened, he had even spoken of execution.”

“Christ!” Tony blurted. “Execution is a bit much, but prison? I think prison is good, what’s wrong with-”

“I cannot abide the thought of my brother locked away, as if there is no hope for redemption,” Thor said over Tony’s protests. When Tony still hesitated, Thor said, “Please, Stark.  I know I ask much of you, but I believe you are the only one who would treat him fairly.  I would do it myself, but Loki refused.”

Behind Thor, Loki was walking slowly around Tony’s living room as if he were already measuring for drapes, the presumptuous bastard.  Tony opened his mouth to say no, this was a terrible idea, Thor should pick someone else, when he noticed that there was a tense line to Loki’s shoulders that made Tony think that he was not as relaxed as he was trying to appear. “I gotta think about it,” Tony said instead, sighing. 

“I can give you one day,” Thor said, clasping Tony on the shoulder. “Thank you, Stark.”

***

“I don't want to be his jailer!” Tony complained into the phone, pacing restlessly around his condo.  He grabbed a pair of coffee mugs and a glass and walked them to the sink.

“To be fair, it sounds more like a parole officer,” Pepper said reasonably, like the horrible person she was.

“That's not much better. I still don’t understand why Thor asked me. Why not Steve? He's all about duty and whatnot.”

“Oh, I think it makes perfect sense.”

“ _What?_ ”

“Aren't you the one who says that no one is irredeemable?” Pepper pointed out, and Tony made a face.  “You think I haven't noticed that since Afghanistan you've started donating to criminal rehabilitation programs? This is your chance to put your mouth where your money is.”  There was a long silence where Tony thought of and discarded a half a dozen responses to that before Pepper said, “That didn't come out right,” sounding embarrassed.

“No, but I understood what you were getting at.” He sighed. It was probably clear to both of them that he was going to do it, as long as it didn’t come with some ridiculous condition like being handcuffed together or something.  “So, how are you and Mr. Potts doing?” he asked, mostly to change the subject.  “Still going to name your first born after me?”

***

“Ok, Thor, lay it on me. What does this thing entail?”

Thor’s eyes lightened in relief. “So you are agreeing?”

“Conditionally!” Tony said quickly, before Thor could get too excited.  “I want to know all the details first.  Like, for example, how you are going to ensure that Loki doesn’t just magic himself away? Or kill me?”

“There is a spell that even Loki cannot break,” Thor said.  He patted his pants like he was looking for something before pulling out a carved wooden tube from a pocket.  Tony stared because he didn’t know that Thor’s getup _had_ pockets.  “My mother prepared it,” Thor explained as he pulled out a sheet of paper and unrolled it.  Tony stared at the unfamiliar writing on the paper before they blurred and rearranged themselves into English, revealing what looked like a contract. 

Tony grumbled to himself as he got up to find his reading glasses. “This doesn’t look like a spell,” Tony pointed out.  “Also, do you really mean _ten years_? That is a hell of a commitment to do as a favor.”

“There will be very little required of you.  You probably won’t even notice, most of the time.” Thor tapped the sheet of paper, which had long provisions of what Loki was and was not allowed to do.  One of them, apparently, was ever set foot in Asgard again, which made Tony obscurely sad for Loki and then aggravated at himself that he even cared.  “The spell does most of the monitoring.  If Loki even considers disobeying any of these provisions, you will know.”

“And then what? Do I call you?”

“If you must, but the idea is that you can take care of it yourself. Stop him, talk to him, whatever you must. If the contract is broken, Loki will be taken straight to a cell in Asgard, with little hope of release.”

Tony took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes.   Fucking magic contract. “And one of these provisions is that Loki can’t hurt me, right?”

“Of course. Any damage he inflicts on you will be returned to him two-fold.”

“Jesus! You guys don’t fuck around, do you?”

“We do not,” Thor said, face grave though there was a suspicious glint in his eyes.  “Are you still willing to take on this responsibility?”

“So let me get this straight.” Tony leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms.  “When we sign this contract, Loki is magically bound to obey its provisions, and if he starts to go wrong, it will let me know?”

“Yes.”

“How will I find him?  What if he’s not on Earth?”

“Magic,” Thor answered. “If you need to go to him, it will take you.”

It physically pained Tony to have to accept magic as an answer, but he knew from experience that trying to understand it would only result in a headache. “And if he’s behaving himself, we both just go about our business as normal.”

“Yes. See, it is not that onerous of a burden,” Thor said cheerfully, and produced an elaborate quill pen from one of his mysterious pockets. 

“Honestly, I’m surprised that Odin agreed. It doesn’t seem like much of a punishment at all.” Tony took the pen reluctantly, running his fingers over the soft, unfamiliar feather.  “Not compared to execution.”

“To be honest, I think Loki would rather gnaw his own arm off than have someone monitoring his actions at all times,” Thor said with a small smile.  “That itself is part of the punishment.  But should he decide to try to make amends for his actions, he will be rewarded for it.”

“So more carrot than stick, then.”  Tony sighed and realized that he was just procrastinating signing the damn thing, so he went to the last page of the document, interested to see that Loki had already signed it with a flourish that took over most of the signature space.  “Just sign here?”

“Yes, but it, ah,” Thor cleared his throat, “it has to be blood.”

“God dammit. Of course it does.” Tony held his hand out because he knew Thor had probably come prepared for this eventuality.

Sure enough, Thor pulled out a short, broad knife wrapped in leather, something that didn’t look like his style at all.  When he saw Tony looking at it, he explained, “Loki stabbed me with this some time ago. It aggravates him when I keep them.”  It was sharp enough to draw blood on one of his fingers and Tony used it to painstakingly sign his name, because apparently signing magical contracts in blood with an alien god was his life now.

“Alright, Loki, it is done,” Thor said when Tony put down the pen. It was surprisingly anticlimactic; Tony expected something to happen as Thor rolled up the paperwork and put it back in the wooden tube, but nothing felt any different. 

As they both stood, Loki appeared.  “He signed?”

“Yes.  You are fortunate, you get to keep your head for at least one more day,” Thor said, clapping his brother on the back.  “Now behave yourself.”

Loki’s response to that was probably something rude and insulting in Asgardian, judging from the way Thor laughed. 

“So that’s all?”  Tony called out to Thor’s back as he walked outside, probably planning on hitching a rainbow ride back to Asgard.

“Like all deals, you have to shake on it,” he called back over his shoulder, and then with a brilliant flash of light and a roaring sound he was gone.

When Tony turned back to Loki he was standing with one hand outstretched, eyebrow raised.  “You planned this,” Tony said accusingly. 

“Well, yes,” Loki said, as if it were obvious. “I hardly wanted to be hidden away in Asgard’s dungeon or executed. So I planted an idea in Thor's fertile brain and let him run with it."

“Why me? Do you think I’m a soft touch, is that it?” Tony kept ignoring the outstretched hand, even though he knew it was childish. 

“No.  It’s because of all of Thor’s acquaintances, you are the only one who would let me explain myself rather than automatically assume that I am planning something sinister.” Loki sighed.  “Now give me your hand, or the contract is void.”

“Fine,” Tony said reluctantly, and put his hand in Loki’s.  As soon as their palms met and Loki’s long, slim fingers wrapped his, Tony felt a swell of relief, resentment, impatience, and underneath it all, anger like a banked fire.  There was had a brief, disorienting sensation of seeing himself from someone else’s eyes and then, as Loki’s hand dropped away, most of it faded except for the faint undercurrent of emotions that weren’t his.  

As Tony blinked, dazed, amusement threaded through those emotions.  As Tony refocused to find Loki watching him with a small smile, he had the sudden urge to go out and yell at the sky.  No wonder Thor had booked it before they had shaken hands, that fast-talking swindler. 

“I take it Thor didn’t mention the soul bond?” Loki asked mildly, still amused by Tony’s irritation.

“He did not,” Tony said, turning on his heel and going straight for the booze.  “Is this permanent?”

“It will last for the duration of the contract, yes.  How else are you to monitor my behavior?”  Loki followed him to the bar, smoothly grabbing the glass of whiskey as Tony poured it. Tony rolled his eyes and poured a new glass while Loki took a sip of his stolen booze. Tony could tell that he was intrigued by the dark, smokey flavor and wasn't that just a kick in the ass.

“God dammit,” Tony said as he drank his whole glass in one swallow and poured himself another.

**Author's Note:**

> Will this relationship continue across other squares? Who knows! Maybe! Stay tuned! :D
> 
>  
> 
> (the answer is yes, it will)


End file.
